‘Madam Yoko and the Sande Dancers’

Madam Yoko (c.1849-1906) was a famous Mende paramount chief who was a powerful figure within the female Sande society. This lantern was built for Kissy Central Lantern club and, when completed, comprised puppets depicting Madam Yoko, various musicians, Sande sampa dancers and a black Sande debul called sowei. (In Sierra Leone debuls (‘devils’) are human masqueraders who embody and perform the spirits of different cult associations (‘societies’). The term connotes nothing evil. They were depicted in puppet form in lanterns for purely entertainment purposes and not as part of any society masquerade.)

This photograph shows the lantern being assembled a few days before the lantern parade. At the front are the figures of two Sande sampa dancers, one mounted on a pole and the other suspended from an overhead structure. The latter will be lowered to the ground on the night of the parade to perform before the judges. The other puppet figures that have so far been assembled on the lantern all represent musicians. The lower part of the lantern (between the floor and the chassis) is where club members will crouch to operate the puppets.